Voting apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. H WEBER VOTING APPARATUS.

N0. 531,818. Patented Jan. 1, 1895.

2 t e e h S 8 u e e h S 2 R E B E H m d 0 M 0 W VOTING APPARATUS.

No. 531,818. Patented Jan 1, 1895.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY \VEBER, OF NORTH TEMESOAL, CALIFORNIA.

VOTING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 531,818, dated January 1, 1895.

Application filed April 9,1894. serial No. 506,948. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY \VEBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at North Temescal, county of Alameda, State of California, have invented an Improvement in Voting-Machines; and I hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to an apparatus especially designed for the casting and recording of votes.

It consists in certain details of construciion which will be more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which-= Figure l is a perspective view of the machine with the outer case removed and parts broken away to show the interior. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing the slots through which the voting disks pass and the stops which are placed between each set. Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken through the axes of two of the disk receiving tubes. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section on the dotted line .r-x of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an elevation of one of the tubes for containing the voting blanks. Fig. 6 shows the register mechanism. Fig. 7 is a view of the top of the table showing the manner of transferring the slide F.

The object of my invention is to provide an apparatus for the reception and correct tallying of all votes which are cast at an election.

A is a table of a length and width sufficient to receive strips upon which are printed the names of all the offices to be voted for at the election, or upon the particular machine, as it will be seen that under some conditions two or more sets of ballots and two or more'ma chines might be employed, and if there are a large number of names on the ticket, it may, for convenience, be divided into a number of parts, each part to be voted on one machine. Any arrangement or rotation of names may be observed, or means for indicating the party to which the candidate belongs to facilitate the voting. These strips are secured upon the table upon opposite edges, and between these are fulcrumed the tilting bars B which are supported at each end so that they may turn from a vertical to a horizontal position. Upon one side of these bars are made shallow depressions O of such size that they will each receive one of the metal blanks or disks which are employed in registering the vote, butnothing larger, and these depressions stand opposite the names of the offices to be voted for which are secured upon the table as before described.

Then the voter enters the booth he places a disk in each of the depressions representing the office and the candidate for which he desires to vote, until his whole vote is thus arranged. Before this is done, the bar B receiving the disks is turned about its pivots, so as to stand with its lower edge in line with grooves or channels D which correspond with the spaces 0 in which the disks are to be placed. The lower edge of the bar B has slot ted channels corresponding and in line with the depression 0, and of the same dimensions as the disks to be used in voting, so that while the bar remains turned on edge, all the disks within it will slide down into the corresponding slots D which are beneath them. In this position the disks rest upon sliding bars 11. beneath, so that their upper edges project slightly above the surface of the table, and thus remain until the person in charge of the machine operates it so as to allow the disks to fall into their respective receivers.

F F are sliding stop pieces movable in longitudinal guides upon the table and extending over the slots D so that when in position they close a certain number of these slots or channels. The guides are movable to allow the stop pieces to be adjusted to suit the ballot to be taken. The number of these slides will depend upon the number of votes to be cast for any particular office. If a single vote is to be cast for any office as governor for which there may be three candidates, there will be two of these slides having sufficient length to cover two of the slots D, leaving the third one uncovered. Adjustable pins fat each end of the section which represent this particular office upon the printed slips, prevent the slides from being moved beyond this space, but they are movable within the space so that the voter is at liberty to move the slides to expose the slot corresponding with the name for which he desires to vote. If it be justices of the peace that are to be voted for, if there should be six candidates, of which two were to be voted for, there would be four of these slides between the stop pins and movable over the space included by six of the disk receiving slots. In this case the voter is at liberty to move the slides so as to expose the two slots corresponding with the names for which he wishes to vote. Now, having dropped the disks into these slots, it will be seen that the slides cannot be moved because the upper edges of the disks project above the surface of the table sufficiently to lock the slides in that position. The turning bars B are retained on edge by any suitable stop mechanism which will prevent their being turned 1 5 until all the disks representing the votes desired to be cast, have been introduced into their respective slots. The person voting then removes the stop and turns the bars B down into a horizontal position. In the pres- 2o ent case I have shown two of these bars extending parallel to each other along the table, with the openings for the disks presented outwardly, and a rectangular block G is intro duced between them while they stand in a 2 5 vertical position to retain them until the voting disks have been introduced. This block is then removed and the bars are turned down into a horizon talposition lying flat above the slots D, and as they project upon each side 0 to some distance while in this position, it will be impossible to introduce any other disks after they have been turned.

The ends of the bars B have connected with them the cross bars H, the lower ends of which are slottedand slidable upon pins I projecting from the end of the table A. While the bars B stand in a vertical position, the inner edges of the bottom of the bars II engage transverse slots J in a longitudinally sliding plate K, and while in this position keep this plate locked so that it cannot be moved in either direction. hen the bars B are turned down to lie fiat after the disks have been deposited, the person in charge of the apparatus can 5 slide the plate K inwardly. This plate K is normally held in the position for the bars II to engage the slots J by means of a spring L surrounding the central rod, and pressing against the inner end of the plate K.

The plates E, upon which the disks rest after they are first deposited in the slots D, are connected with the plate K by bell crank levers M, and these are so arranged that when the plate K is pushed inwardly against the 5 5 spring L, it acts through these lovers to move the plates E sufficiently to one side to allow the disks to drop and pass below them. In line with and below each of these slots is a tubular receiver N made of such diameter that it will receive the disk which falls into it from the slot above upon the removal of the retaining plate E. The first disk thus introduced will fall to the bottom of the tube and lie in a horizontal position therein, and each successive disk as it is introduced will lie upon the one below until the tube is filled. These tubes may be made of any desired length so as to hold the entire vote which may be cast for any one candidate. Upon the sides of the tubes are imprinted or fixed the names of the corresponding candidates as shown upon the table A above, and these tubes are slotted longitudinally as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, each slot having a length equal to the thickness of a certain number of the disks as 10. The slots may be arranged so that each 10 will alternate and they may be marked as 10, 20, 30, 40, &c., so that at a glance the number of votes which have been cast for any candidate may be seen through the slots.

In order to indicate the whole number of votes which have been cast, the sliding bar K has upon its lower surface an incline K which, when the bar is pressed inwardly, acts upon the fulcrum lever O, and depresses it against the action of a spring arm P, which normally raises and holds it in position when the sliding plate K has been withdrawn. When the lever O is depressed it acts through a pawl rod Q upon a ratchet disk R and advances it one tooth. Upon the shaft of this ratchet disk R is an indicator arm or pointer moving over an exposed dial S within view of the operator or any one who chooses to inspect it, so that at a glance the number of votes which have been cast at any time can be readily seen. The stop pawl T prevents the return of the ratchet disk R and the indicator pointers.

In the parallel arrangement of the two guard bars B, shown in the present case, it is sometimes desirable to transfer some of the slides F from one side to the other, as in the case of agreater or less number of offices to be voted for upon either side. This transfer is effected by connecting the guide channels at the end of the apparatus by a transverse channel, as shown in Fig. 7, so that the slides F may be moved around from one side to the other.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A voting apparatus consisting of a table having independent slots for the reception of disks, each of which represents a vote, and independent receivers situated beneath each of the slots, chambered guard bars adapted to receive the disks and direct them into their respective slots in the table, and movable stops by which the disks are supported and prevented from falling into the receivers.

2. Avoting apparatus consisting of a hori zontal table having lists of the offices to be voted for secured upon its surface, independent slots made through the table corresponding with the names of the candidates to be voted for, chambered guard bars situated above the slots adapted to guide voting disks into the various slots, stops upon which the 'disks rest and by which they are prevented from falling into the receivers, and a mechanism by which the stops are removed after all IIO the disks are deposited to allow the latter to fall simultaneously into the receivers.

3. In a voting machine, a horizontal table having independent slots made through it,

5 guard bars extending longitudinally above the slots and having chambers or receptacles adapted to receive disks and direct them into the slots, sliding covers movable in guides over the slots and adapted to cover all of the slots, except the ones in which the voting disks are to be deposited.

4. In a voting machine, a horizontal table having the independent slots corresponding with the names and offices to be voted for,

I guard covers slidable over the slots between limiting stops for each office and adapted to cover all the slots except those which may be voted for for any one oflice, tilting bars extending longitudinally above the slots having chambers adapted to receive voting disks and guide them into the slots, stop plates situated below the slots upon which the disks rest so as to project above the surface of the table and prevent the movement of the sliding covers after the disks have been deposited.

5. A voting machine consisting of the horizontally slotted table having the names of the oflices and candidates fixed thereon to correspond with the slots made in the table and sliding covers movable with relation to said slots to cover all but the number which may be voted for for any one office, longitudinal bars turning on pivots having chambers into which voting disks are placed and by which 5 they are guided into the slots, stop plates beneath the slots upon which the disks rest when first deposited, bars connected with the pivoted chambered guard bars and movable by the turning of said bars, an actuating 4o mechanism for moving the stop plates which is locked while the bars remain in a vertical position and is unlocked when the bars are turned into a horizontal position, whereby it may be moved, and with it the stop plates to release the voting disks and allow them to tall. 4 5

6. The pivoted-chambered bars arranged to be turned into which voting disks are first deposited, the table having independent slots beneath the chambers through which the disks pass, stop plates upon which they rest, guard covers slidable in guides above the slots adapted to expose only the slots in which the voting disks are to beplaced and prevented from movement by the pro ecting disks after they are deposited mechanism by 5 5 which the stop plates are moved so as to allow the disks to fall, a longitudinally sliding bar connected with the stop plates and also with an indicating dial whereby the number of votes cast are shown, and independent receiv- 6o ing chambers adapted to receive the disks after they pass the stop plates.

7. A voting apparatus consisting of a table having slots for the reception of disks, each of which represents a Vote, independent tubular slotted receivers situated beneath the table slots and provided with numbers to indicate the quantity of disks in each chamber, chambered guard bars adapted to receive the disks and direct them into their respective table slots and movable stops by which the disks are supported and prevented from falling into the receivers, substantially as herein described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

HENRY \VEBER. Witnesses:

S. H. NOURSE, J. A. BAYLESS. 

